A Shift In the Wind
by Sparkly Faerie
Summary: AU. Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and most of the assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."
1. Chapter One

**Hello, all! This is something that I've been working on for the last week or two; an AU retelling of the Ranma ½ story if things had been a little different, and people had acted their ages. So far I've got rough drafts of the first six chapters completed, and I think I can safely say that this story is going to be one that deviates and then comes back to the manga's plot before it deviates again. Some events, such as the introduction of characters, are shuffled around depending on the requirements of the story, but more or less everyone will be in here. I'm already planning to cut entire arcs and add completely new ones, so it's not all going to be the same stuff.**

**Also, there will be cursing in this story. I haven't decided if there will be any M-rated material in coming chapters, or if I'll just toe the line. We'll see.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter One**

The Tokyo district of Nerima, Japan, had seen some pretty strange things over the years. However, a small, red-haired girl fighting with a panda, of all things, was completely out of the realm of what passed for normal even in _that_ area.

The redhead tossed her heavy pack aside. "Come on." She took up a kenpo stance, glaring at the large black and white animal as it took a stance of its own. She jumped over the first lunge, planting her feet firmly in the panda's chest. She bore down on her feet, knocking the panda over and using her momentum to jump away. Thinking the fight was over, she turned and picked up her heavy pack.

She'd only gone a few steps when the panda hit her from behind. Her bare feet had trouble getting traction on the smooth, wet concrete, and she slid out onto the next street. People stopped and stared as she turned back to face the panda.

"I'm not going, old man!" She screeched. "We have to find a damn cure!" As she shouted, the panda lunged at her; she grabbed its paw and heaved it over her head, sending it sailing through the air and crashing head-first to the ground. She grabbed her fallen pack, before regarding the animal with disdain. "I'm going back to China." She spat. "You can stay like that forever, for all I care."

So saying, she turned her back one final time. This time, she did not have a chance to recover as the panda whacked her over the head with a fallen street sign, sending her sprawling forward into unconsciousness. The panda picked up both girl and pack, swinging them both onto his shoulders, and growling at the stunned bystanders. The pedestrians shrank back and walked away.

One of the storeowners had called Animal Control, reporting a panda attacking a young girl—but by the time the van had arrived, the panda and his victim were both gone.

* * *

In another part of Nerima, a middle-aged man was reading a postcard for the umpteenth time, constantly checking the clock. His friend was due to arrive, with the boy who would one day be his son-in-law, any minute. He called out to his three daughters to join him in the family room.

Soun Tendo watched his daughters as he told them that his old friend and his son would be coming to visit. He and Genma had debated telling their children about the engagement when the other man had called ahead, before deciding not to. Against Genma's wishes, they would wait, and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before Soun engaged one of his daughters to him. A small voice in the back of his mind murmured that he also wanted to make sure that Ranma Saotome wasn't too much like his father. While Genma Saotome was his very good friend, he wasn't sure he wanted his daughters married to the boy if he was too much like him.

"They'll be here very soon." He re-read the postcard his friend had sent a week before. "Saotome and I trained under the same Master. He has been traveling Asia to train his son in the martial arts for over fourteen years."

"How long will they be staying, Father?" Kasumi folded her hands in her lap. She enjoyed houseguests, though she was frequently the one cleaning up after and cooking for them.

Soun debated internally for a moment. "I'm not sure. Saotome has said that he wants to make an extended visit. They may be here for some months."

Akane looked irritated. "You're kidding, right Daddy?" She huffed. "You're not really gonna let a _boy_ live here, are you?"

Nabiki snickered. "Why? You afraid you wont be able to control your _raging_ hormones?"

"Shut up!" Akane snarled. "You _know_ I hate boys!"

"Now, now, Akane." Kasumi gently chided. "You shouldn't judge the poor boy before you've even met him."

"What do I care?" Akane crossed her arms with a huff and looked away pouting. "All boys are the same."

It was at that moment that they heard the bell by the front gate ring as someone pushed it open, accompanied by a high pitched voice screaming "Let me go, you idiot! They can't see us like this! Let me go!"

All four Tendos made their way to the front door, only to be stopped by the sight of a large panda with a squirming teen on it's back. It was the teen who was the source of the shouts. "Stop! Stop!" He cried, thumping the panda on the head. "You're scaring the shit out of them!"

"Are these your friends, Father?" Kasumi asked in a small voice as she and Nabiki cowered behind him. Akane stood a little behind, watching the panda and boy in front of them. Something felt off—barring the giant panda, of course, which was strange all on its own.

Soun shook his head violently. "Oh, yeah, and _pandas_ just drop by all the time!" Nabiki snapped, stepping back as the panda advanced, hefting the boy down and setting him in front of the family.

And that was when Akane noticed what was off about the situation.

The boy was a girl.

"Y-you wouldn't be…?" Soun asked the girl.

"I'm Ranma Saotome." The girl avoided looking at them, fixating on her toes as she fiddled with her collar. "Sorry about this."

* * *

Akane didn't see what was so shocking about finding out that his friend's son was really his daughter; nevertheless, her father had fainted dead away on the engawa. Between Akane and Ranma, they had managed to heft him into the downstairs guest room while Kasumi arranged the futon and Nabiki fetched a damp cloth. Ranma's pet panda was incredibly well behaved. He simply wandered in after the girl and sat behind her while they made the Tendo patriarch comfortable.

"I'm sorry about this, Ranma." Kasumi was apologizing as she placed the cloth on her father's head.

"I-it's fine."

"Daddy was convinced you were a boy." Nabiki drawled from her seat at Ranma's left. "I dunno why it's such a big shock to the system, though."

"No, it's okay…"

Akane glanced back at the girl. "Where's your father? Wasn't he supposed to be coming with you?"

Ranma looked vaguely panicked, glancing back at the panda. "He's, um, around."

"Will he be here in time for dinner?" Kasumi asked, sitting across from them.

Ranma snorted. "Yeah. The old man wouldn't miss a meal if his life depended on it."

"Well then," Akane stood up and offered Ranma her hand. "I'm Akane. Daddy said that you and your father were staying with us for a while, so do you wanna be friends?"

The effect this had on Ranma was instantaneous; her smile brightened her whole face. "Sure!" She accepted the hand, letting Akane pull her to her feet. She was surprisingly heavy—Akane guessed she had a fair bit of muscle mass, because there didn't seem to be a lot of fat on her.

She led the girl down the hall and out toward the back of the house. "Do you wanna see our dojo?" She asked, guessing that her offer was pleasing as she saw Ranma's eyes light up with interest. "You practice kenpo, right?"

"Yeah, some." Ranma looked around as she stepped into the dojo.

"Do you wanna have a match?" Akane asked, leading the girl into the middle of the room. "For fun?"

Ranma hesitated. "Er…"

Akane smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, I wont attack you for real." She laughed, before settling into a fighting stance.

"If you say so." Ranma simply stood with her hands behind her back, smiling a little. Akane wondered if she was actually serious about kenpo—her father had said that the girl's father had been training her for most of her life, right? Perhaps he'd been mistaken about that, too, because the way Ranma was standing and watching her was in no way any kind of combat stance.

"Hah!" Akane threw a punch, barely hard enough to sting. Ranma leaned away faster than Akane had expected, causing her to miss completely. She threw a second punch to the side, which was dodged with equal ease. A kick aimed at the girl's jaw was evaded by simply bending backwards.

"What's wrong?" Akane demanded. "Why wont you attack me?"

Ranma shrugged. Her little half-smile was really starting to irritate Akane. She began to think that Ranma's problem wasn't that she wasn't serious about the fight—more that she was more skilled than Akane and she knew it. Akane hardened her resolve and decided to throw a _real_ attack. She lunged forward with a battle cry.

But she never connected. Ranma, impossibly, somersaulted right over her head. Unable to stop her forward momentum, Akane's fist flew through the air and struck the wall, cracking the wood. She blinked as she felt fingers prodding her in the back of the head, right over a vulnerable point in the skull. She turned around to stare at the smaller girl, dazed.

Ranma began to laugh. Feeling the tension snap inside her, Akane joined her, adrenaline still pumping. It had been ages since anyone other than her father had managed to get a kill shot in on her. "You're pretty good!" She exclaimed. "Ah," she sighed, "I'm so glad you're a girl." She headed outside, motioning for the other girl to follow her. "I could never stand to lose to a boy." She shuddered.

"Um, about that…" Ranma began, but was cut off by a voice calling them from the house.

"Akane, Ranma!" Kasumi was calling out the kitchen window. "Could you come inside, please? Father is awake and I want to show Ranma to her room."

"You go on with Kasumi." Akane stretched her arms over her head. "I'll go see how Daddy's feeling."

* * *

Akane headed into the changing room when Nabiki had told her that Kasumi wanted her to take a bath before dinner. She stripped off her gi and piled it in the laundry hamper, spotting Ranma's clothes inside. She hadn't seen Ranma since Kasumi had taken her upstairs fifteen minutes ago, and assumed that the redhead was still in the bathroom.

Grabbing a towel, Akane ignored the sign that read 'KNOCK FIRST' and opened the door.

Her first reaction was shock. She stared at the stranger who was getting out of the bath. She had been expecting the little redheaded girl; the dark-haired person in front of her was decidedly—she glanced down to confirm that, yes, he was most _definitely_ male. Slowly, she backed up, sliding the door shut. On autopilot, she slipped the top of her gi back on, tying the belt securely as she stepped into the corridor and pulled the door to the changing room closed. That was when the fear took over.

She took a deep breath and screamed at the top of her lungs.

She ran from the bathroom to the yard, her adrenaline helping her to lift the heavy toro from the koi pond over her head. She was just bout to start heading back to the bathroom to beat the ever-loving _shit_ out of the pervert and drown him in the tub when her sisters appeared in the door behind her.

"Akane?" Kasumi blinked at her. "What are you doing with that?"

"There's a pervert in the bathroom!" Akane shrieked.

Nabiki frowned. "Why didn't you clobber him?" She demanded.

"I couldn't!" Akane screeched. "I was _scared_!"

"That's odd…" Kasumi raised a hand halfway to her mouth. "I thought Ranma was in the bath…"

"Um, s'cuse me." A voice broke into the conversation. Akane and her sisters turned their attention to the intruder. It was the boy from the bath; he was now wearing Ranma's clothes and blushing so hard his face was practically glowing.

"Who are you?" Nabiki demanded.

The boy closed his eyes. "I'm Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this."

* * *

Akane couldn't believe what she was hearing. But the evidence of her eyes as Genma Saotome demonstrated his son's transformations did not lie to her; it turned out the only liar in the room was the boy who had let her believe that he was a girl. She glared at the pervert who sat across the table from her, feeling satisfaction that he seemed to cringe when he snuck a glance up at her.

Mostly the boy stared at his knees, cheeks flaming, as his father did the talking. He'd burst out in anger a few times, which had again brought about another impromptu demonstration. That the older man was a panda wasn't as galling, though. At least he hadn't used his curse to spy on her in the bathroom. She was dimly aware of Kasumi and Nabiki telling Genma off, but her attention was focused on glaring at the boy.

As the conversation wound to a close, Nabiki snorted. "There's a shrinkage joke in there, somewhere." She winked at Ranma, who looked torn between insulted and embarrassed. "Why is it you always manage to attract the weird friends, Akane?" Nabiki teased her sister at the end of the conversation, just as Ranma and his father were standing to go upstairs.

"He's _not_ my friend." Akane snarled, folding her arms and glaring up at him.

"What?" He—currently she, as he had not yet changed back from the last time his father had thrown him into the pond—whipped around to face her. "But… you said—"

"I _thought_ you were a girl." Akane pushed herself to her feet.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Ranma asked, anger bringing colour to his neck and cheeks.

Akane sneered at him. "I _don't_ like boys."

"You don't even know me!" He protested.

"And I don't want to, you pervert!"

"Hey, whoever said I was a pervert?!"

"You saw me _naked_!" She shrieked, fists balled at her sides, getting right into his face.

"_You_ walked in on _me_!" He retaliated, not backing down in the slightest. "And you got a pretty good look at me, too!"

"Now, now," Kasumi tried to butt in, but Akane was having none of it.

"It's different when a girl sees a boy!"

"Oh, _is it_ now?" His expression morphed from frustrated to thunderous anger. "Fuck me, you've got double standards, you crazy bitch."

"_What_ did you call me?" Akane shrieked, her expression morphing into one of deepest loathing.

"Ranma!" Genma shouted over the two of them, grabbing his son by the collar and bringing the argument to a screeching halt. "That is no way to speak to our hosts!"

"_She_ started it!" He jabbed a finger at Akane.

"I don't care. _I'm_ finishing it." Genma struck Ranma with a fist to the jaw, sending the boy-turned-girl sprawling back onto the engawa.

Red-faced, Ranma panted and pushed himself to his feet. "Fine." He huffed darkly, turning sharply on his heel and stomping up the stairs.

"I apologise for my son." Genma said to Soun. "I'll be sure to _explain_ to him the need to be civil to our hosts." His tone indicated that there would be some pain involved in the 'explanation'. Soun frowned at the implication, but it wasn't his place to interfere in the way that Genma disciplined his son.

"No need, Pop." Ranma's voice floated from the stairs as he came back down, pack thrown over one shoulder. "I'm _not _staying here." He threw a look of deep dislike at Akane, which she returned with equal venom. "Thanks for nothing." He spat at her. "Some friend _you_ turned out to be."

Akane glared at the back of his head as he leapt over the wall surrounding the property, disappearing into the night. She was dimly aware of Genma following him, shouting for him to get his ass back or he'd beat him black and blue. Sticking her nose in the air, she opted to skip dinner and headed straight up the stairs to her room. She had homework to do.


	2. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter Two**

Later that night, Akane was working on a particularly stubborn math problem for her homework when her sister's gentle knock came at her bedroom door. Grateful for the interruption, she set her pencil down and called out "Come in!"

Kasumi entered, shutting the door behind her. The older girl crossed the room to sit on Akane's bed, and regarded her with a rare look of mild disappointment. Akane immediately cast her mind to try to discover what could have put such an expression on her elder sister's face. Nothing immediately came to mind. "What is it, Kasumi?" She settled for asking. "Is something wrong?"

Her older sister sighed, her expression melting into something sadder. "Yes, little sister. Something is very wrong." Her voice was softer than usual, as though it pained her to speak the words. "Akane, I wanted to tell you…" she trailed off a bit, seeming to search for words. Akane's mind was going a mile a minute, trying to puzzle her sister out before she spoke again. "I wanted to say how disappointed I am in your behaviour tonight."

Akane bristled. "What do you mean, 'my behaviour'?" She demanded curtly. "What did I do?"

Kasumi regarded her with sad eyes. "The way you treated poor Ranma," Kasumi raised her voice slightly to speak over the beginnings of Akane's protest, "was not the way our father's guests should have been treated." Akane settled for a quiet petulance, knowing that her sister wouldn't listen until she'd said her piece. Though Kasumi was the soft-spoken and gentle one of the family, she was also the mother figure, and that compelled an obedience of sorts from her sisters. "He can't help the curse, Akane. You heard the story. His father knocked him into the water. He could have just as easily ended up a dog, or a monkey. Assuming such pools exist in this Jusenkyo place."

Akane snorted. "The pervert probably enjoys his curse."

"I don't think he does, Akane." Kasumi shook her head. "You saw his face when he first introduced himself. I didn't understand why at the time, so I thought it had something to do with being embarrassed about the racket he was making, but he looked absolutely humiliated. He was shouting 'they can't see us like this', remember? I don't think he enjoys being a girl. He's very much a masculine character; I wouldn't be surprised if this curse might make him a bit insecure in his own skin."

"He saw me _naked_!" Akane protested.

"After _you_ walked in on _him_." Kasumi reminded her. "Akane, I checked, and the 'occupied' sign was still up when he got out of the bath. Even if Ranma was really a girl, you should have asked if it was okay to share a bath, since he would have been a stranger. I know sharing doesn't bother most people, but some people prefer privacy. You know that."

Akane reeled back in shock. Kasumi was always the one that Akane had counted on to understand her in their household—she had provided Akane with a sympathetic shoulder to lean on more than once in the past few weeks, and had agreed that the behaviour of the boys at school was deplorable. She had thought that Kasumi would agree with her on this, too; but it seemed Kasumi was taking the side of some strange boy over her own sister, and Akane wasn't sure how to feel about that.

She crossed her arms and looked resolutely out the window. "What, so I'm just supposed to accept it? That pervert saw me naked, and I'm supposed to get over it? And he insulted me before he left! I suppose I'm just supposed to forgive him for that, too!"

Kasumi sighed. "I wont pretend that he couldn't have phrased it better, but he was justified in what he said, Akane. You were being a little nasty." Akane felt as if she'd been slapped. Kasumi pressed on. "You saw his face when you offered to be his friend, little sister; he lit up. I was thinking what a pretty smile he had. And with what I've gathered from the conversation with Mr. Saotome, I don't think he's had very many friends in his life. With his curse, it would be even harder to make any. You've offered this poor, probably lonely boy—who has a terrible, socially crippling problem—your friendship, only to take it back when you realised he wasn't actually a girl. Worse, you treated him like some kind of monster."

Akane looked down at her lap, twisting her fingers together. "He didn't tell us. He just let us think he was a girl." Despite her defiant words, she felt shame pool in her belly. She recalled the way the red-haired girl earlier had, like Kasumi said, lit up when Akane had offered her friendship, and the absolute misery on his face while they were explaining the situation before he'd run off. Now that she was thinking clearly, she had a sinking feeling that he'd actually started to say something in the dojo before Kasumi had interrupted.

"We didn't exactly give him a chance to explain, with Father fainting and then you offering to show him the dojo. I think he saw his father talking to ours on his way to the bathroom." Kasumi supplied thoughtfully. "He probably assumed that it would all be explained to us by the time he got out." Kasumi sighed. "Akane, if you're going to be upset at anyone, be upset with Father and Mr. Saotome for not making sure we all knew. If, for instance, they had called me into the family room on my way to show Ranma to the guest room, or on my way back to make dinner, I would have known to make sure that I didn't send you into the bathroom with him."

At this point, Akane was feeling very low, seeing the reason behind her sister's words. Kasumi pressed on, encouraged. "He didn't do anything to you, Akane. Not really. It was very embarrassing, yes, but neither of you was really at fault. I don't really think he deserves to be labeled as a pervert." She paused. "You _both_ lost your temper tonight, but that doesn't make him any worse of a person than it makes you. Do you understand what I'm saying, little sister?"

Akane nodded miserably, feeling absolutely rotten. Her sister was right, as always, and Akane's temper had gotten the better of her again. It wouldn't be the first time she'd made up her mind about someone during an outburst, only to later find that she had been unfair in her assessment. Nor, she supposed with a sinking feeling, was it likely to be the last. "Yes. If—if Mr. Saotome finds him and brings him back, I'll apologise for my behaviour."

Kasumi smiled affectionately. "Good girl." She stood and patted the younger girl's shoulder. "Don't stay up too late. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night." Akane responded glumly, returning to her homework feeling utterly miserable.

* * *

Genma was back by breakfast time, announcing that he hadn't seen his son anywhere, but that he was sure he'd be back later that day. "The boy always talks about leaving me behind, but he's yet to actually do it. He always comes back." He grumbled, helping himself to more than his fair share of the rice.

Akane felt Kasumi's eyes on her from the opposite end of the table, and she ate quietly. She hadn't slept well, replaying the afternoon in her mind. If anything, she felt worse—if Ranma had gotten lost or sick after a night in the rain, it would be all her fault.

School that day was much the same as ever; Akane arrived fifteen minutes before the first bell, had dealt with her morning attackers, and had been seated at her desk with five minutes to spare. She kept looking out the window at the cloudy skies, watching the rain come and go. Her mood matched the weather perfectly, she thought. Glum. She didn't tell any of her friends why she was so despondent, merely citing her lack of sleep as the cause for her dour mood. By the time the final bell rang the rain had ceased, and she was more than ready to wander down to the market in search of a burger.

She was standing in line at WcDonalds, contemplating the menu, when she caught a flash of red at the edge of her vision. Turning her head, she was just in time to see Ranma, in female form, leap over a fence and wander into a construction site. Hoping she would be able to find him, she bought two meals and clutched the paper bag and cup holder and hurried over to the fence. A quick inspection around the side revealed a gate that she could push open with her shoulder, and she wandered into the construction site.

The place was empty—with the earlier rain, it was far too wet to do any actual work. As such, she was able to spot Ranma quite easily. His red shirt and hair did little to hide him in amongst the grays and browns of the scaffolding, even if he were standing in the shadows. Akane watched him as she approached, throwing punches and kicks at an invisible opponent. She thought it strange—for someone who had supposedly been studying martial arts all his life, he was a bit sloppy.

"What d'_you_ want?" He stopped and demanded, glaring at her.

"I, um…" Akane held up the paper bag and drinks. "I thought you might want something to eat?"

He turned up his nose at her. "No thanks."

Akane wrestled down her temper, knowing that he was probably still smarting over the previous night. Taking a deep breath, she tried again. "You dad's been looking for you."

Ranma snorted. "I know. I saw him sneaking around last night."

Akane bit her lip. "Look, I'm sorry about yesterday." At his flat, disbelieving stare, she pressed on. "I _am_. It's just—I don't get along so well with the boys at school. They've been giving me all sorts of trouble since the semester started, and it kind of makes it hard for me to trust new boys. And with your curse, and the bathroom…" her voice failed her as her cheeks flooded.

Ranma had looked away, his own cheeks colouring. "That wasn't my fault."

She wasn't exactly sure which he was referring to; the curse, or the nudity. "I know that. But I was embarrassed, and I don't react so well when I get embarrassed, or when I feel like a boy's trying to be perverted with me."

"What'd they _do_ to you?" Ranma asked, hostility apparently forgotten. "Cause I can tell you, no girl _I've_ ever met acts like you, even _if_ she don't like a guy trying to get fresh with her."

Akane's blush deepened. "It's kind of a long story. Can we sit down and eat? The foods going cold."

Ranma jerked his head toward the interior of the half-completed building. "There's a mostly-finished room in the back. My stuff's in there." Without waiting to see if she were following, he turned on his heel and started walking. Beating down the panic that he was going to try to take advantage of her like the boys in school would if she were alone with them, she followed. After all, it wasn't like he could do _too_ much to her at the moment; he was stuck as a girl, and she didn't see how he could get his hands on any hot water in a building that had no power.

The room was clearly meant to be an office of some description one day; Ranma's pack was tossed in a corner away from the lone window. He wandered over to it and sat down with his back against the wall, looking at her expectantly. Hesitating for a moment, Akane joined him, sitting on his right. Wordlessly, she divvied up the food and offered him half. She almost recoiled at the speed with which he dove into his meal, while she picked at hers almost daintily. "Have you eaten today?" She asked, almost afraid of his table manners.

He paused to swallow before speaking. "Yeah, I got some of the leftover breakfast stuff from the dumpster across the street this morning." He resumed eating with gusto, shoving half a handful of fries in his mouth. It was one of the most disturbing sights Akane had ever seen.

She thought of the dirty WcDonalds dumpster she'd passed on her way across the road to find him. "You ate out of the _trash_?" She whispered, horrified.

He shrugged, taking a big mouthful of his soda. "Yeah, so? Pop makes me find my own food all the time. That's usually the best place to look, if you get there quick enough after they chuck it so that it don't start to stink like trash."

Akane felt queasy; suddenly, her half-eaten burger didn't look so good anymore. She offered it to him. "You want this? I don't feel so good all of a sudden."

"Thanks." He all but snatched it out of her hands, also accepting the fries she wordlessly offered him. She sipped at her soda silently, staring off into space as she thought about the boy next to her. She surprised herself by feeling pity—actual _pity_—for him. A boy! Akane hadn't ever thought the day would come when she'd feel bad for a member of the opposite sex, after the way they'd been treating her at school. Studying Ranma more closely than she had the previous night, she noted all manner of small scars and healing abrasions on his visible skin. The thought occurred to her that these had probably all been training accidents of some kind, like the curse. There was a set of puncture wounds near one of his elbows that looked suspiciously like animal teeth. She found she didn't want to contemplate the training methods the boy's father used to train him, if they left scars like that. She recalled the way his father had decked him last night, and cringed; there was a vivid bruise on his jaw.

"Hey!" He waved a small, dainty hand in front of Akane's face. "You in there?"

She gave a start, jumping out of her thoughts. "Sorry, I zoned out. What did you say?"

Ranma had almost finished the second burger, and was now chewing a little slower. "I asked about the guys at school. What'd they do?"

Akane sighed, turning away again. Bringing her knees up to her chest, she wrapped her arms around them and began at the beginning. "There's this guy in my sister's class. His name's Kuno. He's convinced I'm in love with him." She sighed again. "No matter how many times I turn him down, he doesn't take the hint. Then one day I got sick of it and beat him up, and he decided that I only wanted to go out with someone who could beat me in a fight." She glanced at Ranma to see him watching her with a frown on his face. It struck her that despite having seen his true face, _this_ was the face she'd been picturing all day when she thought of him. His male face was a blur in her memory, seen through a haze of embarrassment and fury. She kind of wanted to see it again to see if it were as unpleasant as she remembered.

She cleared her throat and gave herself a little mental shake before she averted her eyes and continued. "And then, at the public speaking competition in the second week of the semester, he announced that, and I quote, 'If anyone wishes to date with Akane Tendo, they must first defeat her in combat. I will permit no other terms!'." She spat, in an approximation of Kuno's significantly deeper voice. Miserably, she shrugged. "Every morning for the last four weeks, I get about a dozen guys trying to beat me up at the school gates before class."

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." Ranma's voice was flat. "Those idiots actually believe that?"

She nodded miserably. "Yeah. I beat the crap out of them every morning, but they keep coming back."

Ranma snorted. "If it were me, I'd start putting people in the hospital." He muttered darkly. "No way I'd put up with that shit."

She ran a hand through her hair. "I broke a guy's arm the second day they rushed me. It hasn't helped."

"Dish out some head injuries, then. Though that might not help—it sounds like they're already suffering from at least one each."

Akane couldn't help it; as a girl, Ranma was such a little thing, and his voice was high enough to make the threat sound ridiculous. She giggled, pressing a hand to her mouth. After a few moments, the laughter passed and she was able to speak again. "I guess you'd be starting to know how it feels, huh?" She realised aloud. "Since your cursed body is so cute and all."

Ranma's expression was thunderous. "This one guy decided to cop a feel of my chest last week, before we left China." He muttered darkly. "I don't think he woke up any time soon."

Akane gaped. "You—you didn't…?"

"Kill him? Nah." Ranma waved it off. "I beat the shit out of him, though. He'd probably still be speaking with a high voice."

Akane smiled, feeling better. "So, will you come back to the house?" She asked. "My sister Kasumi is worried." Ranma hesitated; she could feel the indecision from where she sat. "I promise I'll… _try_ to be your friend." She bit her lip. "I dunno that I'll be any good at it, though." She muttered. "I haven't had a male friend since I was like thirteen."

She watched Ranma stare out the window. After a few moments, he licked his fingers to clean them of grease and salt. "Okay." He stood, hefting his pack over his shoulder. Akane scrambled to her feet, collecting their trash to toss out on the way home. "Fresh start?" He offered. "We forget last night ever happened and start from now."

Akane grinned, holding out her hand. Ranma wiped his hand on his pants before he took it, shaking firmly. "Deal." She paused for a second, considering the strong grip he had on her hand. She wondered how strong he _actually_ was. "Hi, I'm Akane. You wanna be friends?"


	3. Chapter Three

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter Three**

"I'm home!" Akane called out as she and Ranma slipped off their sodden shoes in the entryway. Stripping off her damp socks as well, she called out "Is anyone here?"

"Father and Mr Saotome went to look for—oh, Ranma!" Kasumi had wandered into the hall from the kitchen as she spoke. "Our fathers just left to look for you about an hour ago."

"Oh." Ranma turned back to his shoes. "I can go find—"

"Don't be silly." Kasumi put her hand in the middle of his back, all but shoving him up the hallway. "You are going to go and have a nice, hot bath and then change your clothes." She told him in a no-nonsense tone. "Look at you! You're wet and filthy! You'll get sick if you go back outside!"

Ranma stared down at his slightly grubby toes in embarrassment. Akane, remembering that she was supposed to be his friend now, encouraged him. "Kasumi mothers me and Nabiki all the time." She stage-whispered. "Just go with it."

Bewildered, Ranma let himself be shepherded into the changing room. "Just put your clothes in the washing machine." Kasumi told him. "And any in your pack that need to be washed can go in there, too. I'll clean them tonight, after dinner. You can wear pyjamas to dinner, if you want. No one will mind."

Akane waved at him as Kasumi closed the changing room door in his face, laughing at his bewilderment. Kasumi then steered Akane into the kitchen, where she poured the younger Tendo a cup of tea. "I'm glad you found him, Akane." She said softly. "Did you go looking for him? You're awfully late home from school. Nabiki's been and gone back out to her friend's for dinner."

Akane wrapped her hands around the warm mug. "Not exactly." She shook her head, taking a sip. "I went to the market to get a snack after school and I kind of ran into him. I bought him something to eat and we talked for a little while." She pursed her lips. "He told me that he eats out of _dumpsters_." She looked up at her sister, horror in her eyes. "That that's how Mr. Saotome makes him find his food when they're training. I couldn't believe it."

Kasumi pursed her lips. "I wish I could say I was surprised." She sighed, surprising Akane. "I heard Mr. Saotome telling Father about some of the training they've been doing earlier today. It sounded… unpleasant."

Akane stared at the mug in her hands. "He has so many scars." She murmured. "I mean, I know I have a few from my training," she mentally winced, remembering her broken arm when she was twelve. "But nothing like his."

"I suspect he's led a very hard and isolated life." Kasumi sighed as she stirred something in a pot.

They were silent for a little while, Akane contemplating her sister's suspicions and the conversation she'd had with her new friend in the construction site. "I apologised, like I said I would." She told her sister. "We promised to try to be friends."

Kasumi rewarded her with a sunny smile. "I'm glad." She said simply. "Now, why don't you go and put your things upstairs and get ready for dinner. I'll tell Ranma that you need the bathroom, to avoid another embarrassing incident."

Blushing, Akane nodded and took her bag upstairs.

* * *

It wasn't until the next day that Akane finally got to see Ranma's male body in action as he sparred against his father. She stood on the engawa, just having cleaned up after coming back from her morning run, watching them trade blows back and forth. There was no trace of the sloppiness that she'd noted the day before; he moved fluidly, from block to counter to block again. She half wondered if she'd imagined it, until Genma pulled a dirty trick that sent Ranma flying into the koi pond. He jumped back out, a smaller, lighter, red-haired flurry of furious flying fists, but there was something… off, about the way he moved. It was only maybe another thirty seconds before his father had him flat on his back, announcing that he'd lost.

"Break for breakfast, boy." Genma snarled. Akane half expected him to kick the boy-turned-girl as he passed, though thankfully he didn't. She glared at her friend's father as he passed her, though no one noticed. She'd heard them fighting the night before, after he'd returned from searching for his son, Genma trying to give Ranma a beating. Ranma wasn't the only one who had walked away from the encounter with bruises, though; Genma had a black eye and finger marks on his shoulders.

Ranma picked himself up from the grass, muttering under his breath. Akane, finished with the towel she was using to dry her hair, offered it to him wordlessly. "Thanks." Ranma wrapped it around his body. "One of these days, I'm going to get that old man good." He snarled as he passed her, headed for the bathroom.

He rejoined them at the breakfast table ten minutes later, male once more, dressed for the day in yet another red Chinese shirt and black pants. Akane watched in amazement as he defended his food from his father while he tried to eat. Kasumi and Nabiki were both staring at the bizarre spectacle as they ate their own breakfasts. In the end, Ranma only managed to eat about half of what was in front of him.

"Oh, Ranma." Kasumi said as she started to clear the dishes away. "I've made your lunch for school today. It's in the kitchen, with Nabiki and Akane's. Make sure you pick it up before you leave."

"What?" Ranma choked on the mouthful of tea he'd taken. "Since when am I going to _school_?" He demanded, glaring at his father.

"Since today, boy." Genma glared right back, daring his son to argue. "We're going to be staying here a while, so you might as well go. You were actually meant to start yesterday."

Ranma growled. "You _always_ do this!" He snarled. "Why the hell didn't you _tell_ me?" He demanded. "I've missed _way_ more than a month of school at this point. How the hell d'you expect me to catch up?"

"Stop your bitching, boy." Genma stood, towering over his son. "You'll go to school with Akane and Nabiki, and that's final." Then, without a care in the world, he started to saunter off toward the yard.

Snarling, Ranma picked up the small jug of water from the table and flung it at his father, turning the older man into a panda when it shattered against the back of his head. The panda snarled at him before it stepped down onto the grass. "Sorry about the mess, Kasumi." Ranma grumbled as the eldest sister moved to clean up the broken glass.

"That's quite alright, Ranma." Kasumi murmured placidly. "But please try not to break something the next time you get upset."

"So, you'll be going to the same school as Akane and me." Nabiki put her cup on the tray to be taken to the kitchen for cleaning. "I would suggest _not_ making your curse common knowledge. Otherwise you're gonna get hit with water in the locker room on a daily basis."

"Or worse." Akane shuddered. "Anyway, I have to leave soon if I'm gonna make it in time to beat up the boys today." She gave Ranma a sidelong glance. "Do you wanna walk with me?"

"Um, sure." He shrugged. "But I don't have a bag or nothing."

"I'm sure I can dig my old book bag out of the attic." Kasumi supplied thoughtfully. "I don't recall decorating it in any way, though I did use it for three years, so it's slightly used. And I'm sure we have a spare notebook or two around as well. You'll be picking up your textbooks from school, anyway."

"Great." Ranma grumbled. Akane got the distinct impression that he didn't like school.

* * *

They weren't even out the front gate of the Tendo compound before Ranma jumped up onto the wall and started to follow Akane. She paused and looked at him curiously. He stared back. "What?"

"What are you doing?" She asked, looking pointedly at his feet.

"Balance training." He shrugged. "We gonna get going, or what?"

Blinking, Akane nodded and headed toward the school in silence. It was a lovely morning—there was no trace of the previous day's rain. The sun shined brightly, warm despite the pleasant wind that stirred the skirt of Akane's uniform. It was about halfway there that Akane finally worked up the guts to bring up her earlier observation. "Hey, Ranma?"

"Yeah?" He sounded almost bored.

She glanced back at him; he had his arms folded behind his back as he walked along, not even bothering to watch his feet. It was kind of impressive; Akane could stand on a fence if she needed to, and could maybe even take a few steps, but she doubted she could walk at that pace. "I couldn't help but notice," she cleared her throat. "You fight really well."

He grinned. "Pop trained me to be the best."

She shuddered at what that training must have included, remembering all the scars she'd noticed the day before. "But you don't seem to fight as well when you're a girl."

She heard him stop walking and turned to face him. His face was clouded over with anger, and for a moment she worried that he was mad at her. It took a few moments for him to reply—he started to walk again as he spoke. She trotted along beside him, looking up in worry. "I'm not used to that body yet. My old man wont train me unless I start out as a guy, and he takes advantage of my cursed form without helpin' me learn to adjust for the change in my reach and center of gravity. I'm gettin' better, but I really don't like spendin' time in that body if I don't have to."

Akane nodded, thinking. "But it could be dangerous, couldn't it? If someone found out about your curse and tried to take advantage of it? You really should learn to fight properly in that body."

He jumped down at the edge of the fence. "Yeah, I should. And I'm gettin' there." He looked up. "Speakin' of fightin'…" He nodded at the gates of the school as they came into view. The swarm of boys was already visible.

"I got it." Her face set into a scowl. "Hold my bag, though." She passed it to him. He took it wordlessly, watching as she broke into a run. She let out a mighty war cry as she plunged into the throng, fists flying. He jumped up onto the school fence to get a better view of what was going on.

She'd told him about the morning attacks, but a part of him hadn't really understood what she'd meant. He'd thought that she'd meant they'd tried to take her on one at a time, in a fair fight. This… this was ridiculous. It looked like _more_ than a dozen. At a rough guess, he'd say _maybe_ somewhere between fifteen and twenty boys were waiting for Akane at the school gates, most older and bigger than herself. They mobbed her the moment she stepped foot on the school grounds, all yelling out various declarations of love. The longer it continued, the madder he got, but he refrained from interfering. Akane seemed to be holding her own against the crowd, and he didn't think she'd take it well if he tried to get involved.

"Ranma!" Nabiki called from the second floor. He jerked his head up to see her friends watching the bedlam below. "Hurry up and get to class! You'll be late!" Ranma gaped—shouldn't Nabiki be more concerned about her sister being mobbed by boys two to three times her size every morning?

A battle cry from one of the boys drew his attention back to the fray. He watched from his perch on the wall as Akane spun like a woman possessed, hair and skirt flying every which way, meting out punishment to every delusional pubescent boy who took a swing at her.

This… this wasn't honourable. This wasn't what martial artists were supposed to do. Though, he did note, very few of the attacking boys had much skill—but that made no difference. _Men_ weren't supposed to attack a _woman_ this way. If they'd challenged her fairly, one on one, that would have been one thing. But they were to overwhelm her through sheer brute force alone. He could feel the anger rise, choking him.

It took less than five minutes for Akane to disband the horde. The martial artist in him was assessing her skill level, mentally mapping the way her body moved and the apparent force of her blows, while the teenaged boy in him was admiring the way her skirt flew up and flashed her long legs as she kicked her attackers around. He supposed she had learned through bitter and embarrassing experience to wear those bike shorts under her uniform.

He spotted the final boy before she did. Furious and unable to stand by anymore, he leapt in front of her and caught the rose the boy had thrown, glaring blackly at him. Akane had spun, thinking that Ranma was another boy about to take a swing at her, only to pause mid kick as she watched Ranma crush the flower under his heel. "Is that Kuno?" He asked in a mutter, inclining his head toward the boy in the hakama, wielding a bokken.

Akane peered around him. "Yeah, that's him." She grumbled. "What the hell are you doing?" She hissed.

"Ho! You, there, wretch!" The taller boy cried before he could answer, narrowing his eyes at Ranma as he used his weapon to point at him. "Who are you, to interfere in this noble quest to win the right to date the lovely Akane Tendo? I demand your name!"

Ranma scowled. "I'm—"

"But," the boy continued as if Ranma hadn't begun speaking, "of course, it is the custom to give one's own name first! Very well! Listen carefully, boy, for I shall only say this once: I am the Captain of the Furinkan High School kendo club. I am a Junior in Class E. My peers call me the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High. I am Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen."

Ranma was unimpressed. "I'm Ranma Saotome of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts, and there ain't nothing 'noble' about this bullshit!"

"Stay out of it." Akane hissed, pulling on his arm. "This is _my_ problem!"

"You expect me to just sit back and watch this shit?" Ranma hissed back just as violently. "What if one of those morons got a lucky shot in? Besides, after watching that brawl, I wanna hit something. Might as well be this bastard."

"Ranma!" Akane hit him on the shoulder, though she didn't hit him very hard, even by normal standards. "He'll hurt you."

"Fear not, Akane Tendo!" Kuno glared just as blackly at Ranma as he noted just how closely the two of them were standing. "I shall smite this cretin and we shall continue our glorious battle within mere moments."

"Hold these." Ranma shoved both his own and Akane's bag at her. Knowing she wasn't going to get him to back down, she huffed and stepped out of the way and settled for glowering at him. To Kuno, he added, "There ain't nothin' 'glorious' about trying to force yourself on a girl, you dishonourable sack of dog shit."

"You _dare_ to question my honour?" Ranma had clearly pushed a button. "_I_, the great Tatewaki Kuno, undefeated champion of the high school kendo world?"

"Yes, _yours_," Ranma cracked his knuckles. "The son of a bitch who can't take 'no' for an answer and who'd _force_ a girl to go out with him than accept that she don't like shit about you. I ain't even known her two whole days yet and I can see how much she hates your slimy little guts. Some man you are."

"You will shut your impertinent mouth, boy, or I shall shut it for you!" Kuno rushed forward, taking a swing.

Ranma didn't let Kuno bother with any more preliminaries, going straight on the offensive. He avoided two swings of the bokken before he seized an opening to slip inside Kuno's guard and ram a fist into his stomach. While the older boy was bent in half, winded, Ranma drove his elbow into the back of his head, sending him sprawling to the ground. He was still breathing, but would have a massive headache when he regained consciousness. Ranma stood over him, barely managing to reign in the desire to kick the stupid moron in the crotch.

Akane was gaping at him. "H-how did you do that?" She breathed. "I've never seen anyone get the better of Kuno like that. And I've beaten him every morning!"

Ranma raised his eyes to her, remembering where they were. He shrugged. "Pop was pretty strict with the speed training." He folded his arms behind his head, his anger seemingly gone. "So, we gonna get inside before the final bell, or what?"

* * *

They made it just in time to avoid having to hold buckets in the hall. Akane tried valiantly to pay attention to the math lesson, knowing she needed to bring her grade up by at least a few points, but it was no use. Her mind kept replaying the fight that morning. She still couldn't believe that Ranma had beaten Kuno like that, with just two blows. So brutal and efficient.

I was… it was one of the most impressive things she'd ever seen. And he'd looked _good_ doing it, too, which surprised her on a whole other level. She was convinced, after the semester had begun six weeks ago and the daily brawl had become a thing, that she would never be able to look at a boy her own age like that. But more than once, she'd caught herself peeking at him out of the corner of her eye.

She kept sneaking glances at him as the class droned on. He wasn't even pretending to pay attention, doodling absently in the margins of his notebook in his seat to Akane's right. The rest of the morning passed in a similar fashion, though Akane's concentration _did_ improve after P.E., and Ranma actually fell asleep briefly in Lit. Because it was Saturday, they left the school after third period. By the time Nabiki caught up with them at home, while Ranma was letting Akane take a few swings at him in the dojo, Akane had almost managed to put the entire ordeal out of her mind.

"Geez, Ranma." Nabiki drawled from the door, effectively ending their 'sparring'. "Did you _have_ to give Kuno a concussion? Half the school is convinced you're Akane's secret boyfriend, or something."

"Wha?" Ranma blinked at her, as Akane started to stutter denials.

Nabiki shrugged. "No sweat, though. I set a few key people straight. There's gonna still be a few people who think you're an item, but most of the school knows that Ranma's just Daddy's friend's son who's staying with us for a while."

"Um, thanks?" Ranma asked.

"Yeah, yeah. It'll cost you next time, though." With a wave, Nabiki disappeared into the house.

Ranma and Akane looked at each other for a moment, before Akane shook her head, the memory of the fight that morning resurfacing. "You've _got_ to show me how you did that to Kuno." She took a swing at him that he caught with one hand.

He shrugged, letting her go. "It's just speed. I'm faster than him. That's all."

"There's got to be more to it than that." Akane snapped off a kick. He ducked under it.

"Not really." He dodged a punch. "C'mon, you can go faster than that! I saw the way you moved this mornin'."

With a growl of frustration at his refusal to fight back, Akane spent the next ten minutes trying to hit him, until Kasumi called them inside for lunch.


	4. Chapter Four

**As always, feedback is appreciated.**

* * *

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter Four**

Akane woke to loud voices downstairs on Sunday. Glancing at her alarm clock to see that it was well after nine in the morning, Akane grumbled at the fact that she couldn't even yell at the noisy pair for it being too early. Dragging herself out of bed, she pulled on her gi and wandered down the stairs, pulling her long hair into a braid as she went. After she'd gotten something to eat, she'd go work out in the dojo.

"C'mon, old man!" Ranma, in cursed form, was standing in the yard, glowering at his father. "In this body or not at all!"

"You insult me, Ranma." Genma sneered. "I'll train only my _son_, not some girl."

Ranma let out a truly impressive stream of expletives. "Your _son_ has a handicap, old man." He snarled. "One that is _your_ fault. You should help me turn it into a damn advantage!"

Genma sneered. "What advantage is there to a female's body?"

Akane bypassed them, squashing her annoyance at the loud voices, and headed into the kitchen, where she could smell something sweet. She spotted her sister by the stove, spatula in hand. "Oh, Akane! Good morning." Her sister greeted her. "I'm just finishing up breakfast. Can you go upstairs and wake Nabiki, please?"

Kasumi was bringing a plate piled high with pancakes into the family room when Akane came back downstairs, Nabiki a moment behind. She found herself sitting by Ranma, who had yet to change back to being a boy. It was strange, she thought; Ranma was adamant that he was really a male, but Akane had seen just as much of his cursed form as his true one over the past few days. She wondered if it was deliberate, or if it was part of the curse that he seemed to attract every drop of water within a ten-mile radius.

"I'm tellin' you, old man," Ranma talked around a mouthful of pancake, "I gotta learn to use this body, damnit."

"I don't see why." Genma snorted. "It's not as if you'll go around wearing it all the time."

"And if I get stuck this way in the middle of a fight?"

His only response was a noncommittal grunt.

Akane turned her attention to her own father when she'd finished eating. "Daddy, do you think we could spar a little after breakfast? I've been practicing that kick you showed me last weekend and I want to see if I've got it yet."

"Of course, Akane." Her father never raised his eyes from his plate. "Give me some time to make a few phone calls and I'll meet you out in the dojo."

"I'll go warm up, then." Akane pushed her plate away. "May I be excused?" She directed her gaze to Kasumi.

"Of course. Have fun." Her elder sister nodded.

Akane made her way into the dojo and began stretching; she must have slept the wrong way—the muscles in her left shoulder were a little tight. She spent an extra few minutes loosening them, before slipping into a kata. She was winding down to a close when her father entered the dojo.

They faced off in the usual fashion. Soun let Akane take the offensive for a few moments, resorting to blocks and dodges to better assess her skill level, before pressing back with his own counterattack. Akane held her own remarkably well, even managing to snap off a perfect display of the kick that she had been practicing. Soun called the session to a halt some ten minutes later, and they bowed. The sound of clapping brought both their attention to the doors.

Ranma was standing there, applauding politely as he watched them. "Not bad." He directed at Akane. "You're better than that brawl at school made you look."

Akane flushed at the praise, but it was Soun that answered. "Thank you, Ranma. I take it you were unsuccessful in getting your father to spar with you in cursed form?"

The boy-turned-girl frowned. "Yeah, the idiot has some sort of hang up about girls and the Art. He's never straight-up said so, but he thinks girls are weak."

"Well, you are more than welcome to join Akane and I while you are staying with us." Soun offered. "I know you are more than likely above Akane's own skill level, but perhaps you could spar with her to allow me to make an assessment of where you're at?"

Ranma, who had been looking pleased at his host's offer, immediately hesitated. "I, um…" he cleared his throat. "I don't hit girls." He looked down at his feet.

"Why not?" Akane demanded, scowling at him. "Do _you_ think we're weak, too?"

"I never said that!" Ranma's head snapped up to glare at her. "It's just not honourable for a man to strike a woman!"

"Aren't _you_ a girl, right now?" Akane demanded hotly.

"But I'm still a guy inside!" Ranma planted a hand on his chest, in approximation of where his heart was. "It don't matter what I look like on the outside, I'm a guy!"

"It's an admirable sentiment," Soun cut across Akane's angry next words, moving to plant a hand on Ranma's shoulder. "However, not entirely reasonable when within the confines of a dojo. Akane is a martial artist, and has accepted that she will bear injuries, sometimes inflicted by men, during the course of her training. As your father has no doubt told you, the path of a martial artist is fraught with peril, and Akane walks that path. You insult her by not taking her seriously."

"But…" Ranma looked from Soun to Akane, honestly torn.

"Daddy just wants to see how you move, not how hard you can hit." Akane crossed her arms petulantly. "Didn't you say you need to learn to use that body properly? If your father wont train you, and you wont practice with me and Daddy, who else will you train with?" She pointed out.

"I… I guess…" Ranma, still looking unsure, stepped forward.

Akane sized Ranma up properly. He was perhaps a centimeter or two shorter than her, but with his larger bust, it was likely that he'd weigh about the same. His arms and legs were slightly shorter, as well, and she knew that he wasn't necessarily as fluid as he could be.

Soun stepped aside, turning to watch them. "Begin!"

Sloppy or not, Ranma was definitely faster than her. He dodged every single one of her attacks with minimal effort. As the seconds ticked by and Akane pulled out more and more of her best moves, she began to grow frustrated. She stopped attacking. "What's wrong with you?" She demanded. "Come at me, damnit!"

"Er…" Ranma rubbed the back of his neck, looking sheepish. "Habit?" He offered with a shrug. "Right, I'll stop dodgin' so much."

Akane growled and resumed the offensive. This time, Ranma began to block. After so long of fighting people who couldn't land a hit worth a damn, Kuno excluded, Akane was taken by surprise as Ranma pressed his fist to her stomach; though not hard enough to hurt at all, she doubled over to better absorb the impact, and received a tap to the back of the skull. As she lost her balance and fell to her knees, she realised it was the same move she'd seen him pull on Kuno. However, he hadn't put any power into it. She wasn't even winded by the fist to the stomach; it was like he'd simply tagged her.

She looked up to see Ranma hovering anxiously above her as her father approached. She accepted his outstretched hand, using her other to rub one of her knees, which had taken the worst of her fall. "Ow." Was all she said.

"Did I hit you too hard?" Ranma bit his lip.

"No, you didn't hurt me at all." Akane shook her head to clear it. "I just landed a little heavy on my knees. You _really_ have to show me how to do that."

Ranma shrugged. "I told you. It's just speed."

"You certainly are more skilled than I thought." Soun rubbed his chin. "Ranma, would you spar with me?"

Ranma grinned. "Sure."

Akane wandered over to the other side of the room to wind down with a kata as they began. She watched Ranma critically out of the corner of her eye, trying to puzzle out what was holding him back in the cursed body. He was already better than he'd been at the construction site the other day; she guessed he'd been working on his form. And he gave her father a decent fight—the older man was constantly on the defensive, though he did get a few hits in, himself. Akane grumbled to herself that if Ranma wasn't even getting a proper challenge from her father, he'd almost certainly have been playing with her.

She was just finishing her wind-down as she watched them finish up, Ranma scoring a kick that sent her father tumbling down onto his back. Soun held up a hand that stalled Ranma as he went in for a kill shot, conceding the match. "Very good, Ranma." Soun was actually panting. "I see no reason that you should be struggling. Your form is excellent."

"Then what's wrong with me?" Ranma frowned, staring at his hands.

Soun was frowning as he pushed himself to his feet. "I don't know. Perhaps you're still adjusting to the different center of gravity?"

"Maybe…" Ranma sighed.

"In the meantime, I would suggest you continue to practice with Akane." Soun recommended. "You would both benefit from the exercise—you would gain a sparring partner willing to train with you in female form, and Akane would gain someone more skilled than herself to assist her improvement."

Ranma gave Akane a look out of the corner of his eye. "But I couldn't." He protested. "I'd have to _hit_ her."

Akane narrowed her eyes at him. "You've got no problems hitting Daddy!" She protested.

"Because _he's_ a man!" Ranma shot back. "You're a _girl_! You might be a violent tomboy, but you're still a girl!"

Akane saw red. "What did you call me?" She demanded.

Ranma snorted. "It's the truth, ain't it?" He pointed out. "You whacked me more than once last night!" He swore he had a bruise on his back from the knee she'd dug into him when she was trying to get the dumbbell he'd been holding over her head. He'd been pushing her buttons, true, but it hadn't been reason enough to trip him up and put her whole weight into his spine. He'd stalked off to his room before Kasumi had come in to see if he was alright; she'd asked him to forgive Akane's short temper, insisting that she really was 'a very sweet girl, if hopelessly violent'. "If you can't even control your temper, how could you give a decent fight?"

"Now, now." Soun attempted to cool the argument. "Ranma, why don't you at least consider the option?"

Akane stuck her nose in the air. "Forget it!" She snapped. "I don't need to train with someone who thinks of me as second-rate. I'll be fine practicing alone." She turned on her heel and stalked out of the dojo, leaving an irate Ranma and her stunned father behind. Ranma's hand closed around her elbow and she spun, catching him unawares with a fist to the jaw. He stumbled back a few paces and she continued toward the house.

"Oi, Akane!" Ranma called after her as she reached the hall. She ignored him, stomping up the stairs and into her bedroom, slamming the door behind and refusing to answer when he knocked. "C'mon, Akane!" He pounded on the door. "Open up!"

"Go away!" She shouted, pulling on the doorknob to prevent him from opening it. "If you come in here, I swear, I'll… I'll…!" She couldn't find a threat strong enough.

She could hear Ranma's snarl from the other side of the door. "Fine! If that's the way you want it!" He shrieked, before turning and stomping away. She heard him shout from the other end of the hall, "Just tell me when you're done puttin' words in my mouth!"

She tried to ignore him, turning to rest against the door. Taking a few deep breaths and forcing herself to calm down, she felt an uncomfortable wave of remorse. They'd bickered a fair few times over the last few days—but that one was her fault. She'd give them both time to cool down, and then she'd hunt him down to apologise. It wouldn't do any good in trying now. They'd only end up fighting some more—she learned that the other day. She just hoped he had the sense to get some ice for his jaw. Her knuckles still stung from the impact.

* * *

Akane spent the afternoon sitting in the family room, doing her homework. She hadn't seen Ranma since she'd left the dojo that morning; according to Kasumi, he'd had a bath and announced that he was going out. Akane kept glancing out the shoji every few minutes, hoping she hadn't upset him enough that he'd decided not to come back, like that first night.

"Akane?" Kasumi came in from the kitchen, with a piece of paper in her hand. "Do you think you could go down to the market for me? I'm afraid I don't have quite enough meat for dinner, tonight."

"Um, sure." Akane blinked, closing her English textbook. "Is that a list?"

"Thank you." Kasumi handed her the piece of paper. "I'm sorry, it's a fair bit to carry…"

"That's fine." Akane folded the list and put it in her pocket. "I'll just take my stuff upstairs before I go."

Kasumi handed her a small wad of folded up bills when she came downstairs. "This should be enough to cover it." She handed her a book with her other hand. "And could you please return this to Doctor Tofu for me? It's a bit out of the way, but I'm afraid I haven't had time to take it back, lately…"

Akane blinked at the mention of the name. "Sure, I'll be back soon." She tucked the book under one arm and put her shoes on in the entryway before stepping out into the early evening air. She figured she had maybe an hour and a half until she absolutely _had_ to be home, and set off at a comfortable pace. It was a bit chilly, but the motion kept the worst of it away, and she was thinking what a pleasant night it was for a walk when her thoughts turned, again, to the boy staying in her home.

She felt bad for him. She really did. It had to be hard, she thought, being stuck in a body that he didn't really recognise. She tried to imagine how she would feel if she were forced to become a boy every time she got wet, and shied away from the thought. She might not be the most feminine of girls, but she was still a _girl_. Having a boy's body would be just… _wrong_. She wondered if that was how he felt when he changed into a girl.

She wasn't even at the gate when Akane began mentally editing the apology she'd prepared for the next time she saw him. She didn't understand why they couldn't just get along. She hadn't even lasted a whole weekend before reneging on being his friend. He hadn't even done anything wrong, really. He'd simply wanted to uphold one of his ideals, and she had gone and gotten mad at him for nothing. Yes, she wanted him to taker her seriously, but still… he hadn't actually said anything about her being second-rate. And he was right. Her temper got in the way—not that she'd admit that to him. She sighed.

"Way to go, Tendo." She muttered to herself, running a hand over her face. She really was rubbish at this whole 'friends with a guy' thing.

As if her thoughts had summoned him, she collided with the boy in question as she turned the corner. They stared at each other for a second as Akane tried to make her voice work—she couldn't seem to make words happen. After a moment, he frowned, and made to move around her.

"Wait!" Akane blurted. Ranma stopped, turning a wary eye on her. "I'm sorry." She pressed her lips into a line. "I flew off the handle this morning. I shouldn't have hit you." She took a breath.

"It's okay." Ranma nodded, moving to continue.

"No, it's _not_ okay." Akane protested, catching herself before she stomped her foot like a two year old. "We can't keep doing this."

"Doin' what?" Ranma blinked at her, perplexed.

"This… this…" Akane waved her hand around as she fished for words. "This thing that we do, where we fight and get pissed at each other and then just forget about it later. We've only known each other three days, and we've fought like three or four times already."

Ranma blinked at her, honestly confused. "So?"

Akane gaped at him. "So? _So_?" She repeated incredulously. "Friends don't _do _that, Ranma!" She huffed a sigh. "Look, I have to run some errands for Kasumi. We'll talk when I get home."

He shrugged. "Way I see it," he turned to fall into step beside her. She didn't fight him on his apparent decision to follow her, though a part of her bemoaned that she wouldn't have the time to prepare her explanation. "We just get over it, yeah?"

"Yeah…?" She did not know where he was going with this.

"So, we'd only really have a problem if we didn't drop crap like this morning." He shrugged. "I mean yeah, you got a temper and all, and a mean right hook—though, that might be 'cause you got me where my old man nailed me the other night—" he grinned sheepishly. She noted the bruise and felt a fresh wave of guilt wash over her. "No, look," he'd seen it in her face. "What I'm tryin-a say is, I'm not mad about it anymore. You said sorry, I said it's okay. It's fine."

Akane watched her feet, ashamed. "How do you do that?" She asked in a small voice. "Just… forgive? Just like that? I can't do that."

Ranma shrugged, folding his hands behind his head. "I dunno. Just do." He paused for a beat. "So, what's these errands? Need a hand?"

Akane shrugged. "I gotta return something for her and get some stuff from the market." She shot him a glance. "I wouldn't mind some company, though."

Ranma grinned. "Sure. Where we goin' first?"


	5. Chapter Five

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter Five**

The walk was pleasant. They didn't really speak about much—Akane took the opportunity to point out various offices and residences as she led him down the route to the market, giving Ranma an impromptu tour of their area of Nerima. He asked the occasional question, but was mostly happy to let her talk; it was a far cry from their argument that morning.

Akane completed her purchases feeling much better than she had when she set out. In truth, there wasn't nearly as much to carry as Kasumi had made out, but Ranma still insisted on carrying everything for her. They'd had a brief spat about it before Akane realised he was just trying to be nice. A little red in the face, she handed the bags over before she said or did something stupid, like suggest that he was questioning her strength. To make up for almost losing her temper at him, she bought him a packet of potato chips on the way out, selecting an ice cream for herself.

"Don't tell Kasumi about this." She warned him as they continued along the street, eating their treats. "She'll complain that we've spoiled our dinner."

Ranma quirked an eyebrow. "This ain't even gonna make a dent and you know it."

Akane laughed. "_I_ know that. But try telling Kasumi."

Ranma eyed her as she led him along a different path homeward. He didn't get it. He could have sworn she was going to wallop him one earlier, during that fight with the bags. She said she didn't get how he could forgive her so easily for losing her temper—_he_ didn't get how _she_ could be irate one moment and then perfectly nice the next. She was the most contrary girl he'd ever met. Most girls he'd come across in his life had been one of two things: Girly-girls who were concerned with hair and clothes and, of all things, _shoes_, or macho martial artists intent on keeping up with the boys. Before Akane, he'd never met a girl who seemed to be _both_. She was too macho to be girly, but she was also too feminine to be boyish. He didn't get it.

"Ranma?" Her voice started him with its timidity. "Why did you get involved yesterday?" She asked, shooting him a wary glance. "I could have taken Kuno on my own, you know. I beat him every other morning."

Ranma looked away. "Well, yeah, but…" he fished around for the right words. Even when he settled on what to say, he had a sinking feeling it was going to be the wrong thing. "Kuno, though… I bet he lets up when he fights girls."

Akane growled a little, confirming his suspicion. "Are you calling me weak?" She demanded hotly. "You think I can only beat someone when they go easy on me?"

"No!" Ranma put a few steps between them, in case she decided to lash out. "Those guys at school, they go all out all at the same time and you crush 'em. Even if they ain't very good by themselves, it's still hard to take on that many at once. I just mean, a guy like Kuno, he don't take you seriously. If he did, he wouldn't attack you after everyone else. That's tryin' to take advantage. After you fight all those guys, it'd be no surprise that you're tired, and he wants to use that to beat you. Even if he _is_ holding back. That's not honourable, or takin' you seriously."

"_You_ don't take me seriously, either." Akane's voice betrayed her hurt. "At least, not as a martial artist. You wont even spar with me properly."

"Aww, Akane, it ain't that." He shook his head. "I saw the damage you dished out yesterday. You're better than a lotta people, and you got some serious power, but you got no control." He met her irritated gaze head-on. "I mean it. You get mad, like you did today, and you just sorta snap and start throwin' punches. Maybe in a crowd it does you good, but it don't help in a one-on-one fight. I just don't wanna hurt you or nothin'."

Akane sneered. "Why don't you try me for _real_, sometime?" She dared him. "I'm not some weak, prissy little girl, you know!"

Ranma snorted. "Believe me, I know." He waved her off airily. "You wallop hard enough. But there's more to it than just strength."

Akane growled, taking a step toward him. This was different than losing her temper, she told herself. This was her trying to get him to take her seriously. She darted forward with a punch that he evaded easily. Quicker than she could blink, he was inside her guard, poking all her vulnerable spots with a single finger, one by one. "Wha—?" She backpedaled into the chain link fence behind her, shocked beyond words. The book she'd been holding fell to the ground.

Ranma planted the fist that wasn't holding the groceries on his hip. "See what I mean?" He asked, frowning at her. "You get mad and leave yourself wide open. You ain't fast enough. You lost your balance at the end, too. You focus all your trainin' on offense, but your defense is pretty bad, and you're slow. You defend yourself against your Pop easy enough, but it's the sensei's job to fight at a level that only just challenges his student." He paused. "Unless it's my old man. He'll pretty much just try to kill you."

Akane bent to pick up the book, blinking back angry tears. "I get it." She hoped he wouldn't hear the wobble in her voice. "I'm not a challenge to you, so I'm not worth your time."

Ranma groaned, moving to fall into step beside her as she set off again. "Look, don't cry or nothin'." He tried to calm her, starting to panic. "It ain't nothin' you can't work on. Maybe you should try askin' your Pop about it later."

Akane wiped at her eyes, cursing the tears. "Daddy says he doesn't have the time, with all the work he has to put in for the council. _I_ don't see him doing much work though. I think he just doesn't want to train me anymore." She sighed. Her father had, once upon a time, taken her training very seriously. Over the course of the past few years, though, since she hit puberty, he'd been taking less and less time to work with her. Now, their weekly sparring sessions seemed to be about it. Most of the time, Akane trained on her own. "Can't _you_ help me? While you're staying with us?" She asked, looking up at him with wide eyes.

He backpedaled immediately. "I dunno that that's a good idea, Akane." He shook his head nervously. "I dunno how to train someone the normal way. My pop… he's got some funny ideas about trainin' and stuff. I've been doin' it most of my life, so I can put up with his crap. But I don't think most people could."

"Are you sure you're not just making excuses so you wont have to hit me?" The words were accusatory, but the tone was sad as she averted her gaze.

Ranma frowned. "No, I'm not." He paused for a beat. "You wanna know how he taught me to take a fall?"

"How?" Akane asked, curious despite herself.

"He started throwin' me off stuff." Ranma scowled as he recalled all the injuries that he'd suffered from that particular 'training'. He'd broken both arms and a leg, and had suffered several sprains over the course of the year that his father had insisted that Ranma needed to learn to fall properly. "At first it was just like a foot off the ground, but by the end he was tossin' me off of roofs and stuff."

"You're joking." Akane didn't sound like she believed him, but at least she'd been startled out of her tears. "What kind of man would do that to his own son?"

"Get to know my old man a little better and you can see it." Ranma shrugged. "I mean, c'mon. This is the idiot who took us to Jusenkyo. But not all his trainin' was _total_ bullshit. Walkin' on fences and running on your hands, that stuff was almost normal. I dunno that I'd stick someone on a tiny little bit of dirt surrounded by a pit filled with cactuses, though. Fallin' off that crap gets painful."

Akane shuddered. "Was that for balance, or the handstands?" She asked, morbidly curious.

"Both." He shrugged. "My pop's insane, but that don't mean he ain't lazy. If he could, he'd even make me set up my own trainin' ground with some other kind of trainin'." He shuddered as a particular memory came to him. "He made me dig a huge pit once, when I was a kid. Said it was for strength and endurance. When I was done, he used the pit for—somethin' else." He shied away from the topic of the neko-ken. There was nothing in the world that could _ever_ make him admit to that.

"You're right." Akane shook her head. "I don't want to go through _that_ kind of training."

Ranma grinned. "Hey, it ain't all bad." He thumped himself on the chest. "I'm the best there is, after all."

Akane rolled her eyes. "Obviously none of it ever hurt your ego." She muttered. "But that doesn't mean you can't spar with me, you know, or give me a few tips here and there. Even if you hold back, aren't you looking to adjust to your female body? I can help with that!"

He just laughed. "I dunno about that." He cut her off as she opened her mouth to argue. "Look, I might be able to help with your balance, and maybe even a little bit of defense." He shrugged. "But the rest, you really should ask your old man. He'd be better at trainin' you than me."

"He's just going to say no." Akane grumbled. "You don't get it. I've been trying to get him to train me for _ages_. He just says he doesn't have the time."

Ranma was frowning. "Tell you what." He didn't stop to think about what he was saying, knowing he'd chicken out. "I'll see what my old man did that wasn't too crazy, and maybe we can try some of that stuff. Nothin' too big straight away. I ain't gonna toss you off the roof or make you dig a pit or nothin', but there's gotta be _somethin'_. Just, not right now." He cut her off as she opened her mouth to thank him. "You gotta work on your balance, first."

"And how should I do that?" Akane asked, all eagerness. "I've done all the balance training stuff my Dad has written down."

"I dunno. Gimme a few days and maybe I'll think of somethin'."

* * *

They arrived at the clinic just as Doctor Tofu was seeing out his last patient of the day. The older man recognised Akane with a smile as they stepped inside, bowing in greeting to the old man on his way out. "Good evening, Akane!" The doctor greeted her. "You haven't been by lately. No new injuries, I hope?"

It did not escape Ranma's notice that Akane was now suddenly acting all meek and shy. She bowed deeply to the doctor, a blush that had nothing to do with anger or humiliation spreading across her face. "Good evening, Doctor Tofu!" She greeted, a little too enthusiastically. "And no. I… I haven't been doing anything that might get me injured…"

Tofu laughed good-naturedly. "That's always good to hear." He turned to Ranma. "And who's this?"

"Oh, this is my friend, Ranma Saotome." Akane introduced him. "He and his father are staying with my family for a while. Ranma, this is Doctor Tofu. He's a chiropractor."

"It's nice to meet you, Ranma." Doctor Tofu bowed politely. "That's an awful bruise you've got there." He observed. "Did you come to get it looked at?"

Akane shook her head. "Oh, no. We were just returning this." She held out the book with both hands.

"Ah, thank you, Akane." Tofu took the book. "Why don't you both come inside for some tea?" He offered. "I could take a look at that jaw of yours, too, Ranma, if you'd like."

"Nah, s'ok." He shrugged, but followed them inside anyway, eyeing Akane with interest.

Tofu took them back into his examination room, replacing the book on a shelf behind a desk in the corner. Ranma looked around, noting the hospital cots lining one wall. There was a pair of crutches in one corner, and there seemed to be a second bookshelf on the other side, packed to the brim with both medical texts and old, fraying books in languages Ranma couldn't read. Tofu set about making some tea before Akane stepped forward. "Here, let me." She offered, reaching out for the pot.

"Thank you, Akane." Tofu surrendered the task to her. "Now, let me see that jaw of yours, Ranma."

Ranma protested, even as the doctor's fingers began gently probing the bruised area. "It's fine, doc."

Tofu was frowning. "This is a very deep bruise. What kind of thug did this?"

Ranma noticed Akane stiffen. "My old man nailed me on Thursday night." He admitted.

"It looks more recent than that." Tofu argued. "I'd say this was done today. Maybe last night, at the earliest."

Akane choked on her own saliva. That didn't stop Ranma from answering with "Yeah, well, it probably didn't help that a violent tomboy clobbered me this morn—"

"You shut your mouth!" Akane had turned and shoved him off his seat.

Ranma sprawled on the ground, frowning up at her. "That's exactly what I was talkin' about outside!" He admonished. Akane had the grace to look deeply ashamed of her actions. Ranma frowned as she glanced at the bemused Doctor Tofu, fidgeting under the doctor's gaze.

"Akane… were you the one who hit him?" He asked in tones of deep concern.

"Well… I… that is… it's not…"

Ranma rolled his eyes at the sweet and innocent act as he pushed himself back onto his seat. "Yeah, she punched me this mornin'." He stuck his tongue out at her behind the doctor's back.

"I thought so!" Tofu laughed. "See, the position of the bruise," he turned Ranma's head to show Akane. "That's about where I'd expect you to hit, Akane; I've seen a lot of boys with bruises in this exact position."

Ranma laughed. "You're jokin', right?" He pulled his head out of the older man's grasp.

"Ah, but there's nothing wrong with being active, now. It's a sign of good health." Tofu nodded sagely, turning back to Ranma, oblivious to Akane's distress. Her face was almost glowing, now.

"Yeah, well, she whacked me, but my pop really did get me good in the same spot on Thursday." Ranma rolled his eyes. "She can't take all the credit."

"Aah, that would explain the depth of the bruising." Tofu muttered, turning back to his patient. "Yes, this area here is healing nicely. It's definitely older than the bit at the bottom." He probed the very top of the bruise, just under Ranma's ear. "I would advise—well, not getting hit there again." He chuckled.

They stayed only a little while, just long enough to finish their tea; Kasumi was still waiting on her groceries, after all. When their mugs were rinsed and sitting in the sink, Ranma and Akane said their goodbyes.

"Take care, Akane." Tofu bid her farewell. "Ranma, a moment?" He put his hand on the boy's shoulder.

Looking quizzically between them, Akane continued out the door and over to the gate to give them the privacy that Tofu seemed to want. When she was well and truly out of earshot, Tofu turned to Ranma with a serious expression. "You've known Akane for a few days now, so I don't think I need to tell you how much trouble she's been having with the boys at school, do I?" The doctor began seriously.

Ranma shook his head. "I saw it for myself, yesterday." He admitted. "Wait, how d'you know about that?"

Tofu gave him A Look. "The Tendo family have been patients of mine for a quite some time now. I've known Akane since she was six years old." As Ranma did some adjusting to his estimate of the older man's age, Tofu pressed on. "The last time I've heard of Akane referring to any boy as her friend was well over three years ago."

Ranma shifted uncomfortably. "She said somethin' like that, yeah."

"The reason I'm telling you all this," he seemed to come to the point, "is that I think it would be good for Akane to have at least one male friend." He paused for a beat. "I know she can be a little temperamental; I've treated far too many of the boys in her school not to have heard exactly what's going on." Tofu patted Ranma's shoulder. "But I think it'll help her to have at least one boy she can rely on, to show her that not all boys will treat her badly."

"So… you want me to be nice to her?" Ranma guessed.

"You seem like a good kid, so I don't think I really need to ask you that. Though," he grinned, "you seem to enjoy pressing her buttons, and that's fine, to a point. But Ranma, yes, do try to be a friend to her."

"It's not like I pick fights with her or anythin'." Ranma glanced at the girl by the gate, who was watching them curiously. There was no way she could hear them, though. "She just gets mad and whacks me."

"Ah, but she's such a sweet girl." Tofu countered.

Ranma shrugged. "Has her moments, I guess."

Tofu laughed. "Alright then, I suppose that'll do for now." He patted Ranma's back. "Off you go."

"See ya, Doc." Ranma waved over his shoulder as he joined Akane out on the street.

They set off together, Ranma letting Akane lead the way. She waited until they were out of sight of the clinic before she spoke. "So, what'd Doctor Tofu want?"

Ranma shrugged, stuffing his free hand into his pocket. "Nothin' much." He fibbed, refusing to elaborate when she pressed.


	6. Chapter Six

**Before anyone starts getting upset that I've disappeared for a month, allow me to explain:**

**1. My grandfather has been very, very ill. The whole family has been worried for about six or seven months, but the last one was the worst. Three days ago, my grandmother called an ambulance to take him to the hospital. Yesterday, he **_**finally**_** got the surgery he needed.**

**2. There have been several birthdays in my family, which has taken quite a bit of attention from my writing.**

**3. About three weeks ago, my family adopted a new puppy. As I am the one who spends the most time at home, I am her primary caretaker, and I cannot long afford to take my eyes off her to write, since she will utterly destroy anything she can sink her teeth into. Cute, though.**

**4. I got a Wii U recently, and I've been spending a lot of my (admittedly, rare) spare time playing around on that. Not really an excuse, but there it is.**

**So, there it is. Number 3 will be the biggest impediment to my writing from here on out, I should think. The puppy is actually asleep just behind me at the moment, which is the only reason I'm daring to take my eyes off her in order to post this. I'll try to write whenever I can steal a few moments, but my schedule these days is a bit unpredictable.**

* * *

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ranma ½ or anything associated with it. All rights to Ranma ½ belong to Rumiko Takahashi and the other proper entities.

**Summary:** Sometimes a small shift makes all the difference. This is the world of Ranma ½ if the engagement hadn't been forced on them straight away, and Ranma, Akane, and their assorted suitors and rivals had actually been reasonable. "Against Genma's wishes, Soun had decided to wait and see which one the boy seemed the most suited to before he engaged one of his daughters to him."

**Rating:** T, for language

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance

**Pairings:** Ranma/Akane

* * *

**A Shift In the Wind**

**Chapter Six**

Rumours, despite Akane paying Nabiki a good half of her allowance to squash them, were flying rampant at Furinkan High. According to at least a third of the school, Ranma was Akane's secret boyfriend, who had been traveling the world learning martial arts in order to prove himself worthy of her. Others believed he was a paid bodyguard that Akane's father had hired in order to make sure nothing happened to her during her morning fights. Another, and perhaps more disturbing, rumour was that he had come to seduce Akane or one of her sisters into falling in love with him so that he could marry one of them and get at their dojo.

Ranma, however, was unaware of this final rumour, and Akane did not plan to tell him about it. It was bad enough that Kuno had also somehow found out that Ranma was staying with the Tendo family, and, considering this with the rumours flying around the school, had decided that Ranma had set his sights on 'wooing the beauteous Akane Tendo', announcing in front of the whole school that he would never, ever permit it. She was forced to wonder just how many other idiots in her school had overactive imaginations if they could come up with that sort of crap.

She was on classroom duty with Sayuri on Wednesday afternoon, but her mind kept wandering down to the soccer field. That morning, after Akane had beaten the hoard of boys into submission yet _again_, Kuno had presented Ranma with a formal challenge for after school, announcing that Ranma's tricks would not work on him again. Clearly, he had not learned the previous morning, or the one before, when Ranma pounded him into submission before the final morning bell. It irritated Akane that Ranma was taking over her fights, but she had to admit it was nice to have a few minutes to repair any damage to her hair or clothing before rushing to her classroom.

Ranma had accepted with a 'whatever you say, Kuno', sidestepping a swing of the bokken on his way to class. Yuka had announced that she was going to stay behind and watch the fight with the rest of their class while Akane and Sayuri cleaned up. The latter grumbled that she wanted to watch too, but Akane had shrugged with an 'I've seen them fight already', and had even gone so far as to place a small bet with Nabiki that Ranma would win.

Despite her outward calm about the situation, Akane sped through her duties that afternoon. While there was no question as to which of the two was more skilled, a lucky hit was always a possibility. She wasn't worried. She _wasn't_.

But by the time she and Sayuri had finished and made it down to the school gates, however, Yuka was already waiting for them. "You missed the whole thing!" She chirped as the three of them started toward the Tendo house; they had made arrangements to work on a group assignment that afternoon to be turned in the next morning. "Of course, _everyone_ missed most of it. You should have seen them!"

"What happened?" Sayuri asked eagerly.

"They sort of fought their way off the field. A couple of seniors had to make a run for it." Yuka was all enthusiasm. "I didn't see what happened, exactly, but Kuno chased Ranma all the way to the pool. We heard this great big splash and some yelling, but by the time we got around there they were already gone."

Akane had started at the mention of a splash. Now she _was_ worried. Knowing Ranma and his propensity to attract cold liquids, he had changed, and news of the curse would likely spread rapidly though the school. She shuddered, not wanting to contemplate the rumours that _that_ little tidbit of information would set off. "Then what happened?" She asked, with some trepidation.

"No one knows." Yuka shrugged. "A couple of kids found Kuno out cold by the trees. When he came to he kept saying that Ranma had run away, and then muttered something about a girl in pigtails. I think maybe Ranma might've hit him too hard. There was no girl." Neither of them noticed Akane breathe a sigh of relief.

"So Ranma won, then?" Sayuri chirped. "Excellent. I had a thousand yen riding on that."

* * *

Ranma muttered darkly to himself as he turned into the gate of Tendo compound, still in female form. Damn his stupid curse, anyway!

Of _course_, he reflected bitterly, of _course_ he would end up changing right in the middle of a fight. He rubbed his right breast, wincing; he was going to bruise. That _bastard_ hadn't needed to squeeze so damn _hard_! He felt dirty, and not just in the sweat-soaked, fallen-into-a-pool-and-had-to-hide-in-the-trees-until-everyone-left kind of dirty. He needed to bathe.

He heard the girls on the engawa before he saw them, giving him ample time to check that the coast was clear before slipping into the changing room. Kasumi was already inside, sorting the laundry into colours and whites. She looked up with a smile when she realised she wasn't alone. "Oh, good afternoon, Ranma!" She greeted brightly. "Akane told me you might need to bathe when you got home. I've already filled the tub for you."

"Thanks." Ranma made a mental note to thank Akane later, when her friends had left. It wasn't the first time she'd gone out of her way and arranged to get him hot water when his curse had taken effect. Twice already, she'd forced him to make a pit stop at Doctor Tofu's clinic on the way to school after some old lady got him with a ladle. The good doctor had been shocked to learn of Ranma's curse, but had taken it all in stride; they'd almost ended up late to school after explaining it to him, and he'd given them a vaguely-worded note to give to their teacher to avoid getting into trouble just in case.

He stripped off his clothes, not bothering to mind about the older girl in the room, even going so far as to personally dump his clothes in the hamper behind her. In this body, he had nothing she hadn't seen before.

He hesitated to open the door to the bathing area, pressing his lips into a line as he inspected the skin on his right breast. He could see the beginnings of what were promising to be lurid purple bruises starting to show, and thought about what his old man would say if he found out about what had happened.

"Is something wrong, Ranma?" The girl paused her chore and turn to face him. Seeing how red his face had become as he tried to find the words, she leant against the dryer. "You're home late today."

"Um," Ranma couldn't look at her. He fixated on his feet. "Um, I got into a fight today." He said rather redundantly. That much was obvious; he had knocks and scrapes all over his arms and legs.

"Are you injured?" Kasumi was all concern. "Oh, my, your chest!" She had noticed the hand-shaped bruise, and Ranma's face burned scarlet. "Did that happen during the fight?"

He nodded, turning to show her the bruising properly, despite his mortification. If it were anyone else, he'd have told them to get lost—but he'd found over the week he'd known her that he just couldn't say no to the oldest Tendo. He found himself spilling his guts before he even thought about it. "We ended up in a pool in the middle of it, and the guy, he—he sorta, _grabbed_ me, as he was trying to stop me getting away. I don't think he realised it was me, though. He kept ranting about how I'd run away."

"Oh, _Ranma_." He was surprised to hear pity in her voice. He looked up sharply, to see her watching him with sad, cautious eyes. "Are you alright?"

He shrugged. "A bit bruised, and I think I'm gonna scrub myself red," he tried to cock a grin, but felt that it was coming off somewhat lacking. "But I'm okay. More or less. You should see the other guy."

"Did you need anything?" Kasumi had switched into her mother-hen mode. He'd been the recipient of it a few startling times since he'd come to stay at the Tendo home. "I'll start making some tea, if you want. Or maybe some chocolate milk?" She offered, having discovered his love for the beverage the previous morning.

He shook his head. "I don't need none of that. It's just," he paused, trying to order his thoughts. This was more humiliating than he'd thought. "It's not the first time it's happened." He hesitated again. Kasumi waited patiently. "I ain't even told my old man about it, though. I don't want him to know." He looked up into the thoughtful eyes of Akane's older sister. Funnily, he just noticed for the first time that they were gray; not the same colour as Akane's.

Kasumi hummed thoughtfully. "Well, you have my word that I wont tell him." She promised. "And if you find yourself needing someone to talk to about it all, Ranma… I'll listen." She offered. "I may not be able to relate, since I've never been a man, but… it might help for you to have someone to talk to."

If it were possible to blush _more_ right then, Ranma would have. "Um, thanks. I guess." The idea of talking about his curse made him feel nauseous. It was something that he tried to avoid at all costs—and he doubted that Kasumi would be able to help him with very much, anyway. "I'm gonna…" he jerked his thumb over his shoulder toward the bathroom.

"Of course, Ranma. Enjoy your bath."

* * *

Nabiki grilled Ranma for the details of his scuffle with Kuno over dinner; Genma had laughed heartily with a 'that's my boy!' when Ranma had told them in clipped tones that he'd won. He refused to go into any detail about the fight itself, earning a glare from the middle Tendo sister.

The conversation turned from there to everyone's day. Her father had been out on some City Council business, and had dragged his friend along. Kasumi mentioned her book club meeting before Nabiki began to talk about the profit she'd made on Ranma's fight. Apparently, not nearly as many students as Akane had thought had bet on Ranma. After today, though, she had a feeling that Ranma's reputation would spread to even those who weren't concerned with the martial artists of the school; anyone who could beat Kuno was someone that no one would want to piss off.

"That reminds me," Nabiki was saying as dinner wound to a close. "I have something for you, Ranma. Let me go and get it."

The 'something' turned out to be a letter of challenge, addressed to Ranma's female form. Kuno asked for the 'pigtailed girl' to meet him on the field behind the school at six o'clock the next evening. Nabiki laughed that Kuno didn't know that he-Ranma and she-Ranma were the same person.

"Kuno-baby's a sore loser. I'd watch yourself." She warned, and winked at him before she left.

Akane re-read the letter over Ranma's shoulder. "Maybe you'd better not go?" She offered. "You could beat the crap out of him as a guy, no question, but I dunno about as a girl."

Ranma scoffed. "I could beat him as a girl with both hands tied behind my back."

Akane rolled her eyes. "Of course you can." She scoffed. "Now, am I gonna have to _force_ you to do your homework?"

"Yeah, yeah. Keep your pants on, Tomboy."

Akane glowered at the nickname. He'd started using it regularly, and she despised it. As was her new custom, she replied with, "Jerk."

* * *

Apparently, Kasumi hadn't actually gotten around to doing _his_ laundry yet, and the next day's was Ranma's last set of clean clothing. Of course, he'd somehow managed to spill half a can of soda over himself on the way home, ruining them for the rest of the afternoon. This had resulted in him running around the house an hour before he was due to meet Kuno, in cursed form, wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his chest and a pair of boxer shorts while the three Tendo daughters chased him.

"I ain't wearing no girl's clothes!" Ranma repeated, back to the wall.

"I'm sorry, Ranma, but all your clothes are in the wash." Kasumi _did_ sound apologetic. "They'll be dry in time for school tomorrow, but if you want to make your duel tonight you're going to have to borrow something."

"No way!" Ranma protested.

Akane crossed her arms and fixed Ranma with a glare that made him feel about two inches tall. "Ranma, you are a guest in this house." She reminded him. He shrank against the wall. "You cannot run around half naked."

"It's only for today." Kasumi promised. "You'll have your own clothes back by tomorrow morning."

Ranma shook his head violently.

"Ranma," Nabiki's voice was dangerously soft. He'd learned to be wary of that voice. "Do you realise how much our gas bill has gone up since you and your father came to live with us?" She asked archly. "The two of you keep running hot baths to change back, instead of simply heating a kettle. That is uneconomical—did you know that?"

Ranma hadn't really thought about it. "I—I didn't." He admitted with a sinking feeling.

"You are costing us more than your father pays for the two of you to live here." Nabiki informed him. "And you're refusing to do this for us? Do you know how unsettling it is to have a half-naked girl running around the house? In the bathroom is one thing, but in the family room? In the _garden_? You're making Daddy uncomfortable, at least." At this, her look sharpened. "You _will_ borrow some clothes."

Ranma slumped his shoulders, defeated. "Okay, _fine_. But nothin' too girly!"

Nabiki grinned; she looked almost evil. "That shouldn't be a problem. I'm sure Akane would have something suitable."

"Wait, why _my_ clothes?" Akane demanded as Nabiki grabbed Ranma's wrist and started dragging him up the stairs.

Nabiki shrugged. "Me and Kasumi are too tall. Our stuff would never fit."

"But Akane only ever wears skirts!" Ranma protested. "I ain't wearin' no skirt!"

"Oh, Akane has other things as well." Kasumi said placidly as they reached the door with the duck plate on it, immediately heading for Akane's closet. "I'm sure we can find something for you."

Akane and Ranma were pushed aside as the elder two began to raid the clothing. Ranma watched in rising despair as dress after dress was considered before being shoved aside; he felt obliged to point out several more times that he would _not_ wear anything with a skirt. The whole situation was infuriatingly ridiculous. If it weren't for his duel with Kuno that evening, he'd just have wandered around in his gi as a guy, but it was not fit to be seen outside of a dojo. It had several stains, some of which were blood, others mud and various other things, gathered over the few months that he'd owned it. He'd embarrass his hosts if anyone had seen him in it.

"I found it!" Nabiki cried with triumph, pulling out a set of—Ranma's eyes widened—_pink_ overalls. It had 'China' written across the front in English. "Akane, where's the shirt you wear with this?"

Just minutes later, after many complaints and more cursing than strictly necessary, Ranma had been stuffed into the outfit. The Tendo sisters stepped back to evaluate him. "It fits perfectly!" Nabiki blinked, astonished.

"The chest is too tight." Ranma complained. "It hurts."

Akane reached up to his shoulders and adjusted the straps. "That's 'cause it's adjusted to fit _me_." She snapped, a little annoyed. She knew he wasn't _really_ making a crack about her chest size, but she couldn't help it. "How's that?"

Ranma rolled his shoulders around, throwing a few punches into the air in front of him. "Better."

"And the waist?" Nabiki asked.

Ranma shrugged. "Bit big." He pulled the excess material out to display what he meant. "But it'll do. Thanks, Akane."

Akane, who had been about to snap at him for the 'big' comment, instantly deflated. "Uh, sure." She fidgeted. "Just, um, don't make a habit of borrowing my stuff."

Ranma wrinkled his nose. "Don't plan to. Anyway," he glanced at the clock on Akane's desk. "I gotta go."

"Ruin my clothes and I'll kill you." Akane warned.

"Yeah, yeah. Be back later." He waved her off as he left the room, closing the door behind him.

The three girls looked at each other. "How did you know that bit about the gas bill, Nabiki?" Akane asked skeptically.

The middle Tendo shrugged. "I didn't. It's not due for another two weeks. But it got him dressed, didn't it?"

* * *

Shortly thereafter, Ranma had reached the school, as Kuno's letter had instructed. He was still embarrassed about the indignity he'd suffered in being forced to wear Akane's clothes; he'd been stewing for the walk over that it was all his old man's fault, and was looking forward to knocking the stupid panda's ass around the yard when he got home. But first, he had to deal with Kuno.

The bruises that had come up where Kuno had grabbed him had transferred to his male form, as well, giving Ranma a strange star-patterned bruise that he'd refused to explain to his father the previous night. In fact, he thought grimly as he arrived at the school and rounded the building to the field where Kuno had said to meet, he wanted to kick the shit out of Kuno for grabbing him in the first place.

Kuno was late. Ranma grumbled to himself as he debated waiting any longer; he had better things to do. But, just as he was about to give up on waiting and go home, he spied Kuno in the distance, a hand held behind his back. Planting his hands on his hips, arms akimbo, Ranma glared at the older boy. "You're late." He snarled.

"I apologise, Pigtailed One." The boy said loftily. "However, I am glad to see you have come."

"Where's your sword?" Ranma cocked an eyebrow, wondering if Kuno was going to fight bare-handed. _That_ would be interesting.

Kuno scoffed a little. "I have no need of a weapon."

Ranma scowled. "Well, ain't you a confident one?"

Kuno smirked. "Confident enough to… give you this!" He threw the thing he'd been holding behind his back, so fast it blurred. Ranma caught it on reflex, not noticing until it came to a halt in his hands that he was clutching a bouquet of roses. His mind went blank as he looked back up at the older boy with his mouth half-open. Turning away, Kuno looked back over his shoulder and cleared his throat. "I love you." He said simply, and then continued on his way, Ranma staring after him as his mind tried to come to grips with exactly _what_ had just occurred.


End file.
